'Bath salts' listed as Controlled Dangerous Substance

Move allows for more enforcement of ban

Five substances known as "bath salts" were added to the list of Schedule 1 Controlled Dangerous Substances list in Maryland through emergency regulations Tuesday.

The move codified an order issued this summer by Dr. Joshua M. Sharfstein, secretary of the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, whose office had conducted a study and determined that the synthetic substances aren't yet widely available in Maryland but they could become a threat to health here.

Sharfstein said the move gives law enforcement more power to enforce the earlier ban on bath salts, which can be inhaled, ingested, smoked or injected and can cause cardiac and circulatory problems as well as paranoia and psychosis for days or weeks.